Prologue

The full moon glowed bright in the inky indigo sky.  Everything was still.  It was the dead of winter.
Suddenly two figures emerged into a clearing.  One was a man in his early thirties with pale skin and black hair.  The other was a man in his late twenties with sun tanned skin and shockingly bright blonde hair.  They were both about six feet tall and wore long, black, hooded cloaks.
"Well?" inquired the black haired man.
"We're working as fast as we can," the blonde man cautiously answered, "we need more time!  Please grant us your protection for another week," he pleaded.
"You're trying my patience," growled the black haired man, "You're becoming a burden I don't want to deal with."
"But..."
"Shut up you infadell!  I want everything tomorrow, and that's final!"
As the black haired man turned to leave the blonde man blurted, "But we need more time!"
The black haired man turned swiftly, there was a flash, and the blonde man crumpled to the ground.  The black haired man sheathed his sword and walked away. The moonlight revealed a deep slit in the man's sun tanned throat.  The man's hood fell back to reveal the lifeless face of the king.